Texas child actress from 'The Patriot' dies at 21

Updated 10:55 am, Monday, July 21, 2014

Photo: 2009 David Livingston

FILE JULY 19, 2014: 21 year old actress Skye McCole Bartusiak died at her home in Texas on July 18, 2014. According to reports, no cause of death is known at this time. Bartusiak played Mel Gibsons daughter in The Patriot. LOS ANGELES, CA - MARCH 29: Actress Skye McCole Bartusiak arrives at Nickelodeon's 2008 Kids' Choice Awards held at UCLA's Pauley Pavilion on March 29, 2008 in Westwood, California.
Photo: Alberto E. Rodriguez, Getty Images

Actors Hilary Swank and Skye McCole Bartusiak, 10, smile for photographers during a photo call Thursday, March 6, 2003 in New York. The pair will be in the revival of William Gibson's play, "The Miracle Worker" which opens the end of April on Broadway. Swank will take the role of "Annie Sullivan" and Bartusiak will play "Helen Keller."
Photo: BEBETO MATTHEWS, AP

Actors Hilary Swank and Skye McCole Bartusiak, 10, smile for...

SKYE MCCOLE BARTUSIAK ON SET OF 'THE PATRIOT' DATE UNKNOWN. HOUCHRON CAPTION (06/28/2000): Skye McCole Bartusiak has a golden touch - two previous movies and a miniseries that included her have been nominated for major awards.
Photo: UNKNOWN

SKYE MCCOLE BARTUSIAK ON SET OF 'THE PATRIOT' DATE UNKNOWN....

Skye McCole Bartusiak will play Helen Keller in a revival of ``The Miracle Worker'' opening April 24 on Broadway. Preview performances begin April 8.
Photo: AP

CONTACT FILED: SKYE MCCOLE BARTUSIAK
Skye McCole Bartusiak is a local girl who plays Michael Douglas' kid in ``Don't Say a Word.'' In the movie, she's a smart kid kidnapped and her life threatened. 9/25/2001 (D. Fahleson/Chronicle Staff). HOUCHRON CAPTION (10/03/2001): At 9 years old, Skye McCole Bartusiak is already making a name for herself in feature films and television. HOUCHRON CAPTION (10/27/2002): Bartusiak.
Photo: D. Fahleson, Houston Chronicle

CONTACT FILED: SKYE MCCOLE BARTUSIAK
Skye McCole Bartusiak is a...

(Top to bottom) In the Columbia Pictures presentation THE PATRIOT, the Martin family-(from left to right)-William (Logan Lerman), servant Abigale (Beatrice Bush), Susan (Skye McCole Bartusiak), Margaret (Mika Boorem) Nathan (Trevor Morgan), Benjamin (Mel Gibson), Samuel (Byron Chafin) and Thomas (Gregory Smith)-must defend their home from a ruthless English army. Benjamin Martin (Mel Gibson), sister-in-law Charlotte Selton (Joely Richardson, right) and the rest of the Martin family take refuge from encroaching war on a stretch of beach that has become a safe haven for freed and escaped slaves. HOUCHRON CAPTION (07/09/2000): In the Revolutionary War epic The Patriot, Mel Gibson, third from right, portrays a man who must defend his family from the English army. Also starring in the film are Logan Lerman, left, Beatrice Bush (the family's servant), Skye McCole Bartusiak, Mika Boorem, Trevor Morgan, Byron Chafin and Gregory Smith.
Photo: Andrew Cooper, Columbia Pictures C2000

caption: BEYOND THE PRAIRIE II: THE TRUE STORY OF LAURA INGALLS WILDER CONTINUES , starring Richard Thomas (right), Lindsay Crouse (left), Meredith Monroe (wearing blue) and Walton Goggins, all reprising their roles from "Beyond the Prairie: The True Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder," will be broadcast as the "CBS Sunday Movie," Sunday, March 17 (9:00-11:00 PM,ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. In this new television movie, Laura (Monroe) and Almanzo (Goggins) Wilder decide to leave their home in South Dakota to seek a better life in Missouri with their daughter, Rose (Skye McCole Bartusiak, pictured). Laura documents their daily life in her letters home to her parents, Charles and Caroline Ingalls (Thomas and Crouse), and late at night writes the rich and textured stories she will eventually have published. copyright: Photo: Robert Voets/CBS 2001 CBS Worldwide Inc. All Right Reserved. HOUCHRON CAPTION (03/17/2002): Beyond the Prairie II: The True Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder Continues features from left: Lindsay Crouse as Caroline Ingalls, Walton Goggins as Almanzo Wilder, Meredith Monroe as Laura Ingalls Wilder, Richard Thomas as Charles Ingalls, and, in front, Skye McCole Bartusiak as Rose.
Photo: ROBERT VOETS, CBS

caption: BEYOND THE PRAIRIE II: THE TRUE STORY OF LAURA INGALLS...

HOUCHRON CAPTION (07/12/2000): Darrell McAlexander from The Woodlands, right, joins fellow ``Patriot'' actor Skye McCole Bartusiak, 7, of Houston, in a visit with movie-goers in The Woodlands. McAlexander portrayed a British soldier in the film.
Photo: David Hopper, Special To The Chronicle

HOUSTON (AP) — Actress Skye McCole Bartusiak, who portrayed Mel Gibson's young daughter in the 2000 film "The Patriot," died in her Houston home, her mother said Sunday. She was 21.

Bartusiak's mother, Helen Bartusiak, told The Associated Press the actress had been living in a garage apartment at her parents' home. She said the actress' boyfriend found her unresponsive on her bed Saturday.

Helen Bartusiak said she tried to resuscitate her daughter but could not. She said the actress had been healthy and did not drink or do drugs and the family did not yet know a cause of death.

Bartusiak made her acting debut in the television miniseries "Storm of the Century" in 1999 and also had a role on "24" in 2002-2003.

She made her film debut in the "The Cider House Rules" in 1999 and starred with Michael Douglas in "Don't Say a Word" in 2001. Her most recent move was "Sick Boy" in 2012.

Bartusiak was best known for her role in Gibson's Revolutionary War epic "The Patriot," where she played the daughter of militia leader Benjamin Martin who struggles to speak with her father.

"The Patriot" cast also included Heath Ledger, who died after an accidental overdose of painkillers and sedatives in 2008.